Troost-Cleaver II Redevelopment Project
I've only been at my internship for two weeks, but I've been very busy from the start.
While I was here for my externship in March, I helped my firm prepare for a RFP for a redevelopment plan along the Troost Avenue corridor. Troost is a major north/south street and Cleaver is a major east/west street that serves as a connection between 71 Highway and the Plaza. Troost carries a lot of baggage in Kansas City. Traditionally, whites lived west of Troost and blacks east of Troost. Conditions vary drastically on either side. On the west, you have some of Kansas City's wealthiest neighborhoods and nationally known institutions. On the east, you have classic examples of disinvestment. Visually, the differences are stark.
A bungalow located on the west side in Historic Hyde Park at Brush Creek Blvd and Harrison Ave. Note the use of stone, which is a characteristic of the traditional Kansas City bungalow style.
A block of Forest Avenue, located just east of Troost. In order from left to right we have a fourplex, a vacant lot, and a vacant, condemned house. The lots on this block are only 25 feet wide.
Our project focuses on four areas:
The 4500 block of Troost on the west side of Troost and the 1000 block of Brush Creek on the North side of Brush Creek (Area A)
The Art Gallery Apartments (Area B)
The vacant lot just north of the Walgreens on Troost (Area C)
The 4600 block of Troost on the east side; right on the southeast corner of Troost and Brush Creek is the proposed site of a new Family Dollar store. The dollar store issue is a hot topic in the neighborhoods along Troost and I'll get into it later because it is something that we are having to deal with (Area D)
I'm really excited to work on this project for a couple of reasons. First, I think this is a great catalyst for people to shake their negative stereotypes about Troost. As a major north-south street, you're going to find very different vibes depending on where you're at, which is not to be unexpected. The civil engineering firm we often work with is located at 8th and Troost downtown, it has a very different feel from the urban garden and art studio I visited today at 33rd and Troost, Rockhurst University at 52nd and Troost, the Landing shopping center at 63rd and Troost, and the Tower Homes neighborhood at 75th and Troost. I'm tired of so many people of the general public acting like Troost should be shunned. That attitude is what has gotten the east side in the predicament that it's in today. It is not uncommon for a business to come in and refuse to have their address on Troost despite their business being at the intersection of Troost and whatever number street. It's despicable.
Another aspect that excites me is the solution that we are creating to deal with some of these very challenges I just mentioned. One of the results of Troost's negative perception is that outsiders, developers, business people, etc. disparage the avenue and they begin to assign value to the people who live along Troost. What hurts me the most is to see that outsiders don't think much of the people who live in the community around Troost and Cleaver because they're poor and in a lot of cases, black. The selection of services, retail, and housing in our corridor leaves much to be desired. The Apple Market on Cleaver is widely known to be a terrible grocery store. I know it, my friends know it, the local residents know it--if they don't have a car, they have no other choice but to shop there. When you walk in, you can smell the meat from the meat counter (no bueno!), the quality and selection of the produce is poor (I've seen rotting tomatoes more than once), and everything is barred and chained, which to me is like treating people like they're criminals. I'm not saying that the market in this area could support a Whole Foods or some other organic grocer, but I am saying is that everyone is clamoring for a decent, reasonably priced grocery store. Other than the supermarket, the only other food options are a Burger King and the city's very first bulletproof KFC. I don't even need to offer commentary, it speaks for itself.
This is a good place for me to speak on the dollar store controversy that's about to blow up. Currently, on Troost between 31st and 85th Streets, there are four dollar stores: a Dollar General at 31st and three Family Dollars at 31st, 63rd, and 82nd. Additionally, there is a Dollar Tree that has a 63rd Street address but is for all intents and purposes located at the Landing just like the Family Dollar. You can't possibly tell me that people need all of these dollar stores. I hear the argument that people in the neighborhood need choice and affordability (it's the same argument that's being used for the controversial Walmart that's just got approved for Waldo). Why does choice have to be a dollar store? Why can't we offer something better. Quality doesn't have to equal expense.
Where we are now: Dollar General has recently won multiple variances at the city's Board of Zoning Adjustment (BZA) to build a store on Troost just north of our study area at the corner of Troost and 46th Street. Family Dollar has gotten wind of Dollar General's plans and now wants to build a store at 45th and Troost. I guess they're going after the drug store model of locating on top of one another...
Part of the problem stems from the zoning code. In order to encourage development around Troost, much of the property at "troubled" intersections is zoned UR (urban redevelopment). It makes it easy for development that is less than desirable to happen. As it was explained to me, essentially all developers need is a building permit to construct in this zone. Unfortunately, these neighborhoods with UR zoning already have to deal with payday loan places, pawn shops, and fast food restaurants as their primary forms of retail. I don't want to suggest that these places don't serve a purpose and shouldn't have the chance to operate or should be banned, however, I think most people would agree that a clustering of these types of businesses is not a good thing.
In working with neighborhoods in our plan area, the dollar store issue has emerged as very salient. Mostly, residents don't want to set a precedence by supporting the construction of dollar stores in their neighborhood. While other neighborhoods may have experienced an infiltration of businesses like the ones I mentioned before, the Troost and Cleaver intersection has not yet. However, there are concerns that once dollar stores come in, other undesirable development will follow. Then the pattern established at Troost and Cleaver could be replicated in other areas of the city.
Back to the plan. The team hosted a three day planning charrette at UMKC last week. We invited the steering committee, community members, and other stakeholders to evening meeting. This was one of the most intensive processes I've ever been involved with. It was great to interface with the community and to come up with a plan that mostly satisfied everyone.
The areas that we are focusing on are shown above.
We used this as our context map to illustrate surrounding neighborhoods, institutions, and assets of the planning area. We are focusing on making the Troost/Brush Creek intersection the focal point of this study area. The block of Troost between Cleaver and Brush Creek does not have much opportunity for redevelopment because of the presence of Walgreens and Burger King, respectively. Between Brush Creek and 45th, there is much opportunity for redevelopment, as much of the property is owned by two different owners. We were able to do a good deal of visioning with community members and stakeholders for this block. We call the two blocks of Troost between Volker and Cleaver a transition opportunity for several reasons. The chief reason is because there are two vacant lots owned by the Kauffman Foundation on the west side of Troost that could be employed to fill in those blocks. There's pretty much nothing on those blocks--there are two buildings owned by UMKC that never seem to have much activity and a check cashing place on the southeast corner of Troost and Cleaver. Heading south on Troost from Cleaver, one would hit the Discovery Center (really cool), a park owned by the Kauffman Foundation, Brush Creek, and eventually, UMKC and Rockhurst University.
To me, this stretch is underutilized, especially given the importance it serves as a transit corridor. The Troost MAX line, one of Kansas City's BRT lines, runs up and down Troost. It serves a critical role in Kansas City's public transportation, as it is the MAX line with the highest ridership. Many people travel Troost daily to and from the numerous institutions and employment areas located along the street. I think it's important that the street is interesting and viable regardless of what stretch you find yourself. I look at the redevelopment at Troost and Armour and I'd like to see a concerted effort similar to that between Cleaver and Volker. As this isn't a part of our study area, we aren't focusing on it, but it's always present in our discussions and conversations, particularly since two of the institutions that are present along this stretch, UMKC and Kauffman, are two stakeholders in our planning area.
These are the options we developed based on the first evening of discussion.
This was a fairly popular option with community members. The only thing they were unsure of was the amount of live/work development. But most loved the idea of a community anchor institution presence.
This option was not popular. There was too much residential development and not enough retail for the attendees' tastes.
This was by far the most popular option. Community members felt as though there was a good balance between residential, retail, and institutional redevelopment.
We took the community's feedback and came up with a draft, which we presented on Thursday night.
Below is the second option for the Faith Mission Church property (located on Brush Creek between Harrison and Campbell). The plan above has the church being demolished and the property being redeveloped into apartments:
The next step is to figure out what we need to do in order to put this plan into motion. It's looking like we're going to have to create an overlay zone in order to ensure that the desired development occurs. An overlay zone is a regulatory tool that creates a special zoning district; it is placed over an existing base zone(s), which identifies special provisions in addition to those in the underlying base zone. If an overlay zone is utilized, land will have two zones: the underlying zone AND the overlay zone. We also may have to look into creating a form-based code. Form-based codes help create streetscapes that are predicable and compatible by controlling the physical form of buildings. This differs from zoning which primarily addresses land use by encouraging segregation of incompatible uses.
Additionally, we will be in communication with the community regarding our progress. We have also solicited feedback from the community by imploring charrette attendees to share the information with their neighbors. I suspect that there will be people unhappy with our first draft. The timeline for this project is fast--the next public meeting for the plan is in September and the final product is due by November 30.
That's it for now! I'm planning on updating from now on every Friday, which is my day off. I may update if I get more time/something dramatic happens.
Take care.
